Yildirim Army Group

The Yildirim Army Group or Thunderbolt Army Group of the Ottoman Empire (Turkish: Yıldırım Ordular Grubu) or Army Group F (German: Heeresgruppe F) was an Army Group of the Ottoman Army during World War I. While being an Ottoman unit; it also contained the German Asia Corps.

See also: Army Group F
Yildirim Army Group
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk as commander, with his adjutants, 1918.
ActiveJuly 1917[1] – November 7, 1918[2][3]
Country Ottoman Empire
TypeArmy group
Size150,000
PatronSultans of the Ottoman Empire
EngagementsSinai and Palestine Campaign (World War I)
Battle of Megiddo
Commanders
Notable
commanders		Erich von Falkenhayn (July 1917[1] – February 6, 1918[4])
Otto Liman von Sanders (February 24[5] – October 30, 1918)
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (October 31 – November 7, 1918[2])

Starting in June 1917, the Yildirim Army Group's first commander in chief was the former Prussian Minister of War and Chief of Staff Erich von Falkenhayn. Von Falkenhayn was replaced by General of the Cavalry Otto Liman von Sanders on 25 February 1918. After the Armistice of Mudros on 30 October 1918, Mustafa Kemal took command until the Group's dissolution a few days later.

Tactics

The army group included troops who used the latest Western-Front infiltration tactics; were equipped with close-combat gear, such as Stahlhelms and stick-grenades; and were supported by artillery and machine guns.[6][7]

World War I

Order of Battle, August 1917

In August 1917, the army group was structured as follows:[8]

with the

  • 42nd Division
  • 48th Division
  • 59th Division[9]
    • XX Corps at Huj
      • 16th Division
      • 54th Division
      • 178th Infantry Regiment
      • 3rd Cavalry Division
    • XXII Corps at Gaza
      • 3rd Division
      • 7th Division
      • 53rd Division[10][11]

Order of Battle, January 1918

In January 1918, the army group was structured as follows:[12]

Order of Battle, June 1918

In June 1918, the army group was structured as follows:[13]

Order of Battle, September 1918

In September 1918, the army group was structured as follows:[14]

After Mudros

Order of Battle, November 1918

In November 1918, the army group was structured as follows:[15]

Yildirim Troops Inspectorate, May 1919

In April 1919, Şevket Turgut Pasha, Cevat Çobanlı and Fevzi Çakmak hold a secret meeting in Constantinople. They prepared a report called "Trio Oath" (Üçler Misâkı) and decided to establish army inspectorate for the defense of homeland. In late April, Fevzi Çakmak submitted this report to the Minister of War Şakir Pasha. On April 30, 1919, the War Ministry and Sultan Mehmed VI ratified the decision about the establishing of army inspectorates that had been accepted by the Chief of General Staff[16] And then the First Army Troops Inspectorate (stationed in Constantinople, Fevzi Çakmak), the Yildirim Troops Inspectorate (stationed in Konya, Cemal Mersinli, later Second Army Inspectorate) Inspectorate, the Ninth Army Troops Inspectorate (stationed in Erzurum, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, later Third Army Inspectorate) was formed. Additionally, the Rumeli Military Troops Inspectorate (Nureddin Pasha) would be established and the XIII Corps would be under the direction of the Ministry of War.[17] In May 1919, the army inspectorate was structured as follows:[18][19]

References
  1. Edward J. Erickson, Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War, Greenwood Press, 2001, ISBN 0-313-31516-7, p. 169.
  2. T.C. Genelkurmay Harp Tarihi Başkanlığı Yayınları, Türk İstiklâl Harbine Katılan Tümen ve Daha Üst Kademelerdeki Komutanların Biyografileri, Genkurmay Başkanlığı Basımevi, Ankara, 1972, p. 9. (in Turkish)
  3. Zekeriya Türkmen, Mütareke Döneminde Ordunun Durumu ve Yeniden Yapılanması (1918–1920), Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, 2001, ISBN 975-16-1372-8, p. 48. (in Turkish)
  4. Edward J. Erickson, Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War, Greenwood Press, 2001, ISBN 0-313-31516-7, p. 193.
  5. Edward J. Erickson, Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War, Greenwood Press, 2001, ISBN 0-313-31516-7, p. 194.
  6. Hadaway, Stuart (2015). From Gaza to Jerusalem: The Campaign for Southern Palestine 1917. Stroud: The History Press. p. 63. ISBN 978-0-7509-6661-0. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  7. Faulkner, Neil (24 May 2016). Lawrence of Arabia's War: The Arabs, the British and the Remaking of the Middle East in WWI. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 482. ISBN 978-0-300-19683-2. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  8. Edward J. Erickson, Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War, Greenwood Press, 2001, ISBN 0-313-31516-7, p. 170.
  9. Falls24
  10. Erickson 2001 p. 163
  11. Falls 1930 Vol. 2 p. 35
  12. Edward J. Erickson, Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War, Greenwood Press, 2001, ISBN 0-313-31516-7, p. 181.
  13. Edward J. Erickson, Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War, Greenwood Press, 2001, ISBN 0-313-31516-7, p. 188.
  14. Edward J. Erickson, Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War, Greenwood Press, 2001, ISBN 0-313-31516-7, p. 197.
  15. Edward J. Erickson, Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War, Greenwood Press, 2001, ISBN 0-313-31516-7, p. 202.
  16. Zekeriya Türkmen, Mütareke Döneminde Ordunun Durumu ve Yeniden Yapılanması (1918–1920), Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, 2001, ISBN 975-16-1372-8, p. 105. (in Turkish)
  17. Zekeriya Türkmen, Mütareke Döneminde Ordunun Durumu ve Yeniden Yapılanması (1918–1920), Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, 2001, ISBN 975-16-1372-8, p. 106. (in Turkish)
  18. Zekeriya Türkmen, Mütareke Döneminde Ordunun Durumu ve Yeniden Yapılanması (1918–1920), Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, 2001, ISBN 975-16-1372-8, p. 333. (in Turkish)
  19. Zekeriya Türkmen, Mütareke Döneminde Ordunun Durumu ve Yeniden Yapılanması (1918–1920), Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, 2001, ISBN 975-16-1372-8, pp. 110–111. (in Turkish)
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